“a quarrel in a far-away country between people of whom we know nothing?”

Alan Parker makes a very interesting comparison between today and Europe in 1938. Including this implied comparison between Neville Chamberlain and Barack Obama.

One big thing to know about Neville Chamberlain is that he never expected his legacy to be in the field of foreign affairs.

Chamberlain, a former mayor of Birmingham, was considered an energetic and effective reformer on social and workplace issues. As health minister and chancellor of the exchequer, he had modernized the British welfare system during the depression and, as prime minister, pushed through the Factories Act 1937 (which limited working hours for women and children and generally improved working conditions), the Coal Act 1938 (which set the stage for nationalization of Britain’s coal industry) and, also in 1938, the Holidays with Pay Act (which is self-explanatory). Again in 1938, Chamberlain’s Housing Act provided subsidies to redevelop slum neighbourhoods and maintained rent controls.

Despite the way he looks to us now, Neville Chamberlain was seen in the 1930s as quite the modern fellow, a real go-getter with very progressive ideas

Chamberlain was focused on a substantial agenda of other domestic reforms while Europe was sliding closer to the calamity of war. In fact, Chamberlain’s actions in appeasing Hitler were largely driven by his desire to get Europe back into a state of peace

He goes on to say that Putin is not Hitler, but there are scary similarities between the impulses that moved Adolf and Vlad. Both wanted to restore the power and glory that their countries lost, Germany in World War 1, and Russia when the Soviet Union collapsed.

So the 1938 headline and story would read:

“Western dilemma: Giving Sudetenland to Hitler to save Czechoslovakia

“It is the ugly solution to the Sudetenland crisis world leaders will never acknowledge but grudgingly may have to accept.

“Give Sudetenland to Adolf Hitler — and hope this sates his ambition of being remembered as the omnipotent leader who restored Germany’s post-World War I might enough to leave the rest of Czechoslovakia alone.”

In the 2014 version, the XXXs represent Crimea, the YYYs represent Vladimir Putin, the ZZZs represent Ukraine, the AAAs represent Russia and the BBBs represent Soviet Union.

So the 2014 version would read:

“Western dilemma: Giving Crimea to Putin to save Ukraine

“It is the ugly solution to the Crimea crisis world leaders will never acknowledge but grudgingly may have to accept.

“Give Crimea to Vladimir Putin — and hope this sates his ambition of being remembered as the omnipotent leader who restored Russia’s post-Soviet might enough to leave the rest of Ukraine alone.”

ANSWER: It just doesn’t matter. It could be either. It applies to both. In point of fact, it’s an AFP wire story from a few days ago — March 10, 2014. But it could just as easily have been a Reuters wire story from September 1938.

I was going to say that everyone knows what happened after 1938, but that's not true.  Ask anyone under 30, even under 40 and they'll come up blank.  History has been replaced by "Current Events" and for the typical Democrat voter, especially its base, history is the story of Selma.   History is the story of white repression and racism.  History was the story of evil white males oppressing women.  History was made by the election of the first black president.  What could go wrong?